Protecting Your Comics Collection

You bought your first Marvel title, enjoyed reading it and decided to buy it monthly. You found a comic specialty shop near your area and placed your orders as that is the best way not to miss any issue.

Now you got about 10-15 issues of your favorite comic title and you are not sure how you should keep it. You may not want to be a serious comic collector yet, but you want to keep your comics properly and in order.

It’s actually simple and cheap.

For a start, you only need 3 things to protect your comics. These are the basics – the 3 Bs – comics bags, boards and boxes. All three are available at any comic specialty store. A Box, 15 boards, and 15 bags will cost you less than US$10. Of course, there are different grades of bags, boards and boxes.

Let’s go through all the 3 Bs.

Boards
Backing boards are used to prevent your comics form being bent or folded. It is a piece of cardboard that is designed to keep comic books flat during storage. There are several types of boards from the normal chipboard to the ‘super’ acid-free board. The standard size will fit comfortably into any current size comic bag. If you are using the normal boards, it is recommended that you switched them every 3-5 years as they contain acids that can change the color of your comics.

Bags
These bags come in many types. They have bags made out of polyethylene, polypropylene, and polyester. The main usage is to protect your collection from dust, dirt, finger oils and other airborne pollutants.

Boxes
These boxes are made especially for comics. I am using the Comic Defense System Regular Comic Box. It comes with a lid and measures 14″ x 7 3/4″. Some other brands come in different sizes in terms of length. It depends on where are you going to keep these boxes. Short comic book boxes are great if you need to store them in a small closet

There you go, 3 Bs to get you started, but please take note that some comic shop provides a bag and board as a compliment for each comic purchased. So, the only thing you need now is a box to keep them.

Remember, you need all 3. If you are asking which one to buy first, get the boards and bags first. Then when you have enough comics, get a box.

These are the pictures to show you how to protect your comic collection using comics bags, boards, and a box.

These are the things that you need. A box, a backing board, a comic plastic bag and the comic that you want to keep. For your information, the comic sample that I used in the picture below is the first issue from the Dark Avengers.

The first thing you need to do is to take the backing board and insert it into the plastic bag. After that, put your comic inside the bag as the pictures shown below.

Now, it’s time to ‘build’ your box. Regardless which brand you are going to purchase, they all usually come flat. Just follow the simple instruction that comes together with it and your box will be ready in 2 minutes.

There’s so many types of comics bags and boards. For a new collector, don’t get the premium one straight away. It will be very expensive. Get the the normal one. The most popular one at the shop you buy your comics. They can advise.